How important is staying hydrated? It turns out that office water coolers can have a significant positive impact on a workplace in both the long term and the short. By avoiding dehydration, a workplace will be happier, healthier and more productive.

Hydration Keeps You Healthy

It’s no secret that not drinking enough water can have a negative impact on health in both the short and long term. Even setting aside long term health effects like kidney damage and seizures, dehydration can cause more immediate problems like headaches, lethargy, joint pain, inability to concentrate, nausea, vomiting, and memory loss. Obviously, suffering from any combination of those symptoms is likely to make for an unpleasant day where not much work is getting done.

Dehydration Can Affect Mood

Not drinking enough water isn’t just bad for health; it can affect behaviour as well. Studies have shown that even slight levels of dehydration can have a negative impact on people’s mood. Obviously, people who are feeling irritable are less likely to get along with co-workers or get their work done, and probably won’t want to even be at work in the first place. When employees have access to plenty of water, it can drastically improve people’s moods and make work a more pleasant environment to be in.

Water Coolers Over Tap Water

Office water coolers have a reputation for being the place where employees go to gossip and waste time. But in truth, statistics show that offices with water coolers get more work done than those without one. This makes sense, too. Employees are less likely to be dehydrated when there’s cool, fresh water readily available. Water coolers also have the advantage of serving up filtered water, which doesn’t have any of the pollutants and chemicals often found in tap water and often just tastes better than what comes out of the water fountain.

More Water, Less Sugary Drinks

Another benefit of office water coolers is that employees who have easy access to water are less likely to drink sugary drinks and other unhealthy drinks during the workday. The links between sugary drinks and health risks like diabetes and obesity have long been established, and in recent years more and more studies have come out showing the dangerous side effects of consuming large amounts of sugar. Office water coolers can lead to a healthier workplace by keeping workers away from reaching for another sugary drink.

Water Coolers Save Money

Aside from the health benefits that come from choosing water over sugary drinks, office water coolers also require less power to run than a vending machine. So not only can a cooler increase productivity, improve the mood around the office, and keep employees healthy, switching out the drinks dispenser in favour of a water fountain can save a business a nice chunk of change on their energy bills as well. Since people who are properly hydrated are less hungry and eat less during the day, it might be possible to get rid of the snack machine, too.

Because of all the reasons mentioned above, employers should do everything they can to promote drinking enough water throughout the day. Employees who take steps to stay hydrated will not only improve the quality of their work, but the quality of their lives outside of work as well.

This sponsored article was written in conjunction with Water Coolers Direct.